McHenry County judge to preside over Daley nephew case

A judge in McHenry County will preside over the trial of Richard Vanecko, the nephew of former Mayor Richard Daley who faces an involuntary manslaughter charge in the 2004 death of David Koschman.

The Illinois Supreme Court today assigned the chief judge of McHenry County Circuit Court to appoint a judge to preside over the high-profile trial.

A Cook County judge who was randomly assigned the case had links to Daley and withdrew, leading county judicial officials to ask the Supreme Court to find a judge from another county to handle the proceeding.

In asking for an outside judge, Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans told the high court he wanted to avoid "the appearance of impropriety."

Evans sent the letter at the request of Judge Michael Toomin, who earlier this year appointed Dan Webb as a special prosecutor to look into the death of Koschman. A special grand jury subsequently indicted Daley's nephew, Richard Vanecko, of involuntary mansalughter.

Judge Arthur Hill, who has ties to Daley, was initially assigned case by random. But he withdrew "in an abundance of caution." The special prosecutor then asked that the new judge be from outside the county, over the strong objections of Vanecko's attorneys.

Koschman, 21, of Mount Prospect, had been drinking in the Rush Street nightlife district early on April 24, 2004 when he and his friends quarreled with a group that included Vanecko. During the altercation, Koschman was knocked to the street, hitting the back of his head on the pavement. He died 11 days later.

Police at the time said Koschman was the aggressor and closed the case without charges. In announcing the indictment, Webb, a former U.S. attorney, noted that at 6-foot-3 and 230 pounds, Vanecko towered over Koschman, who was 5-foot-5 and 125 pounds.

Webb said the grand jury is still probing how the original investigation was conducted.

Vanecko's attorneys released a statement denying wrongdoing. If convicted of involuntary manslaughter, Vanecko faces from probation up to 5 years in prison.